Obama’s Twitter Campaign Backfires

President Obama better hope Twitter followers don’t portend electoral votes. The president’s official re-election Twitter account lost thousands of followers Friday, after he asked Americans to use the social media site to get Republicans to vote on the debt ceiling. All day on Friday, Obama used the account @BarackObama to send out tweets that listed the Twitter handles of Republicans in the House, urging followers to reach out to them and ask for compromise. By the end of the day Friday, they tweeted, “Thanks for contacting your legislators, and sticking with us amid our tweeting today. We’re done, we swear.” But not everyone was “sticking with” the president’s Twitter feed: He lost at least 33,000 followers amid the flurry of activity.